According to the same Pew study, some of the most popular games for American teens are: Guitar Hero, Halo 3, Madden NFL, Solitaire, and Dance Dance Revolution. Interestingly, half of the boys surveyed said one of their three favorite games had a Mature or Adult rating.

Academics, policy makers and parents have long discussed how video games affect children’s health, behavior and education but have reached no consensus.

Whereas some research has found that violent video game use is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children, another study reveals a link between playing video games and greater creativity. Similarly, while one study found a correlation between video game, television use and increased attention problems, another study saw a relationship between playing video games and enhanced visual attention.

There have also been forays into understanding the educational value of video games. One public school in New York City has even adopted game-like learning into its curriculum.

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Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.